Normal, At Least, I Hope So
by Epiphany On Toast
Summary: Puck has taken a bet where he has to get Sabrina to kiss him in public before Halloween, but he's finding that the best way to win her is to be the guy she accidentally fell in love with. Puckabrina and Attempted Humor all the way. Finally finished.
1. Notes, Festivals, and Nagging

**AN: I was in Drivers' Ed, sitting there doodling, when I thought of this. I couldn't resist the thought of a story like this. **

**I kind of have an idea where this might go. That's wonderful for me. Usually I can barely get past the first chapter. And I'm sorry, this one will seem pointless, but I have to introduce the characters and open up the plot. Just, - bear with me, k?**

The classroom was cold, just like the crisp October weather outside the building. What was she doing there anyway?

Oh yeah. School.

After the Grimms had gotten Tobias Clay out of jail, there had been a few years of relative quiet in the town, with a few mysteries, but barely any activity from the Hand. Sabrina suspected that they were planning something, but she had no proof to support her thoughts. All the rest of the family was just happy that they hadn't tried anything.

Since Mayor Heart had suddenly disappeared, after a few months some of the humans started moving back in. Business started returning, and as more jobs had to be filled, more humans came to fill them. After enough teachers were in town, the schools opened again. So the kids were forced to go to school.

The Ferryport Landing High school was a one story brick building down the road from the elementary and middle schools, with a parking lot big enough for about thirty cars. One hundred and fifty people went there, so in about a month Sabrina had learned everyone's name, number, and second cousin.

Of course, Puck was in every single one of her classes, thanks to Uncle Jake. He had come in the first day and met with the secretary, a little old lady who wore a different ascot every day, and bingo, the schedules were fixed.

So there she was, sitting in second period History, tapping the eraser of her pencil on the desk to the song in her head.

_The stars are burning,  
>I hear your voice in my mind.<br>Can't you hear me calling?  
>My heart is yearning,<br>Like the ocean that's running dry.  
>Catch me I'm falling.<br>It's like the ground is crumbling  
>Underneath my feet.<br>Won't you save me?  
>There's gonna be a monsoon<br>When you get back to me.  
><em>

"Hey."

Sabrina looked up just as a paper wad smacked her in the head. She unwrapped it, smoothing out the wrinkles so she could read it.

On it was Puck's scribble:

**What song?**

She sighed. Only Puck would know if she was thinking of a song or not. It could get really annoying sometimes. She wrote back:

_**A Year Without Rain. :P**_

She wadded the paper back up and tossed it at his head, then hurriedly looked at the board, poising her pencil so it looked like she was taking notes. Mr. Donlan went on, seemingly unknowing of the notes being passed. He didn't even pause in his summary of the French Revolution.

Again the wad smacked her head.

**P That's no good. **

**Catalyst**** is better. ;D**

She glared at him. Of course he would recommend his favorite song. Hmm, what could she say to that? Oh yeah. She put the name of the song she had been humming in first period study hall.

_**Oh yeah? Try **_

_**Catching Up. **_

_**It'll stay in your head longer. ;P**_

She threw it back, waiting for a reply. She turned her head, glancing at the kids nearby. There was Stephanie, all her attention on the teacher, and Louise to her right, her head craned over her sketchbook. Those were only a few of the girls that Sabrina had befriended in the past month, not to mention the guys she had met. All types had tried to ask her out, but she hadn't felt like any of them had any depth. And strangely, none of the guys ever tried talking to her again after they were turned down. They all just hurried past her, trying to avoid eye contact.

Another smack.

**Really? **

**Loathing. ;3**

Sabrina groaned. After Louise had put the clip on Facebook, that song had randomly been belted out in the hallway for weeks. Parts of it still came up in the most unlikely moments. She remembered when it had started playing in her head in the middle of a science test.

_**Ok. **_

_**You win. P**__  
><em>

She threw it back, Puck caught it and grinned. _  
><em>

"So the French-"

Thankfully, the intercom signal cut through Mr. Donlan's lecture.

"Could we please have all the freshmen come to the auditorium at this time please. All freshmen to the auditorium at this time. Thank you."

With the regular chatter of bored teenagers, about six students - Sabrina, Puck, Stephanie and Louise included, got up to leave. "Before you go, make sure you've written down tonight's assignment!" Mr. Donlan called out to the class. He was ignored.

The auditorium was small, about the size of the Golden Egg, and it smelled like bleach and floor cleaner. Sabrina gagged. What were they going to tell them now?

The remaining freshman class of 2015 sat in the first three rows, lounging and talking quietly. Sabrina, Stephanie, and Louise sat down directly behind them, and Puck sat right behind them.

A portly man—a Mr. McFayley, was on the stage, a microphone in his hand. He cleared his throat. The students stopped their conversations and looked at him expectantly. He coughed again.

"Well, as you probably have heard, the school's first Halloween Festival is at the end of this month. The seniors have already gotten the preparations for the dance, and the juniors and sophomores have made the arrangements for the festival in the park, so all that's left to do is prepare the Fall Celebration of the Arts. As this is the least likely to me messed up, we have put the freshmen in charge. Your job is to come up with a schedule, decorations, and organize the performing groups. Who will volunteer to head the group in charge of schedule?"

A few hands were raised. Sabrina nudged Stephanie. "Raise your hand. You're really organized and you handle time well. You would be good at this."

Stephanie smiled a little and raised her hand.

The man on the stage spoke again. "And who will volunteer to be on the decorations committee?" Louise's hand shot up. Puck snickered, and she lowered it slightly, but then Stephanie elbowed her and she straightened her arm.

Sabrina turned and glared at Puck.

"What?" he asked, obviously confused.

She growled. "Don't be stupid. Louise is a great artist, and there is nothing wrong with decorating, so shut your big mouth." She turned to Louise. "Don't listen to him, just do whatever you want."

Louise grinned. "It's fine. I just thought I was too excited, so it doesn't matter anyway. But thanks."

Mr. McFayley had already called the people for organizing the performing groups while they had been talking, and the bell dismissing the students to their third period classes had rung. The four got up to go.

Sabrina and Puck's lockers were next to each other, and Stephanie's was only three away, but Louise's was right underneath Puck's. This was a problem for both of them, because Louise's six foot frame forced her to kneel in the busy hallway in order to get to her things, and when she did that Puck had to lean over her to reach his stuff, and then when he tried to close his locker Louise had to duck to avoid it. The whole situation was awkward for both of them.

Louise was already at her locker, pulling out her books when Puck and Sabrina got there.

Puck was always surprised. "How'd you get here so fast?"

Louise looked up and grinned. "I walked. You should try it, it works really well. "

Sabrina snorted and opened her locker to get her Spanish binder. Louise was like Puck in a lot of ways, mostly their sense of humor and their reactions to different situations, because the two of them looked almost nothing alike. Louise was at least an inch taller than Puck, with long curly mahogany hair and eyes nearly the same color. Her skinny frame was similar to his, but hers wasn't as muscle-bound as Puck's, and she was paler, slightly pinkish with freckles, while Puck had been unconsciously developing a slight tan.

Sabrina stared at the two of them, looking for more differences. Although she had only known Louise for a little over two months, Sabrina had noticed that Louise was really good at drawing, while Puck's "art" was hardly more than stick figures. Louise was also more apt to laugh at things than Puck. Overall, Louise was a lighthearted person.

Puck looked around and caught her staring. She opened her mouth to defend herself, but he shook his head, grinning. "Later."

Louise stood up. "Well, see you in Geometry. Bye!"

And with that, she turned around and headed down the hall. Sabrina and Puck walked down the hall to the Foreign Language room. Since the school was so small, all three of the foreign languages taught there—French, Spanish, and German, were all taught in one room, just at different periods of the day. Third period was Spanish.

The two headed to their seats, and as soon as Puck was in the seat next to her, he cut to the chase.

"So, why were you staring? I know I'm good looking, but you don't normally ogle much." He raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"I was just thinking how you guys are alike."

"Ah. Sure. That's it," he said sarcastically. "Are you kidding? We're nothing alike! Why were you really looking?"

"Now, _clase, saquen sus carpetas de tareas por favor_." The teacher's voice cut through the conversation, and they were forced to stop it for the moment.

Spanish passed quickly, and when the bell rang Puck caught Sabrina's arm before she could get out of the room and pushed her into the hallway where they melted with the crowd. He kept pushing until they reached their lockers again.

Sabrina shrugged him off and worked the lock on hers, twisted the numbers while he talked.

"Why were you really looking? Must I blackmail it out of you?"

She scowled. "I already told you. And besides, you don't have anything to blackmail me on."

He shrugged. "I could make something up. Maybe something about a crush, or maybe a secret letter."

"A secret letter? How could that get me in trouble?"

"It would if it was to a guy asking him to meet you somewhere at night, as that would mean you were planning to sneak out." He waggled his eyebrows. She groaned. Henry would be furious if he knew she had snuck out at night.

"I told you, I was looking for similarities. Although, considering that her IQ is at least a hundred points above yours, it was surprising that I found anything at all."

"So what did you find then?"

She pushed past him down the hallway, heading for the Geometry room. "Come on, we're going to be late if we don't hurry."

Louise was waiting in the room for them when they came in, sitting next to a strawberry blonde girl, who was already working on the warm up. Louise waved them over and patted the two seats next to her, and they sat down.

The entire day went like that, with Puck badgering about the differences and Sabrina ignoring him. It wasn't till they finally got home that she told him, and even then he wasn't convinced.

"Well, I don't see why you had to ignore me the whole day. You could have just told me anyway."

"I just didn't want her to think I was talking about her behind her back. And I knew you wouldn't care that much anyway."

"You know, you could've just said I was handsome and avoid the problem altogether." He grinned.

"You wish. Besides, I thought you wanted me to be honest."

"Yeah, but- hey!"


	2. Bet with a Deadline

**AN: FINALLY. I have Microsoft word back! I had all of this written out before, but then Microsoft went down and the whole thing was destroyed. I am so mad right now. **

**Some of you people out there seem to like pretending you are opinionless robots. I can see how many people have checked out this story, and about 95% of you guys are silent. That leads me to believe that you are either extremely shy or just LAME. If you have time to read a story, you should have time to review it. If you don't have time to review, then you probably don't have enough time to read the story in the first place. **

**And I don't do well with silence. Rip on me, rip on the story, my OOC-ness or my total lack of plot, I DON'T CARE. Just give me something! When no one tells me what they like/don't like about a story, it makes it kind of hard on the author to fix the problem/keep writing in a good way. You can't get a sink fixed if you don't call the plumber. **

**The Perfect Reviewer : TELLS ME WHAT THEY THINK. Whether it's "luv it plz contnu" or a flame ripping on my very soul, they are showing me that they have an opinion, which I find usually means they have working brain cells and a respect (or lack thereof) for my story. **

**Sorry to rip on you guys, and for the really long AN, but I just get really mad when 300 people read a story and 10 of them review. **

**This chapter will be in Puck POV, just FYI. **

"What to do… What to do…," He mumbled. The lunch line was only a dozen people long, and that didn't give Puck much time to choose. Burger or spaghetti? Mashed potatoes or applesauce? Chocolate milk or water?

Grimm had already sat down by the time he was out of the line. He was just headed to the seat next to her, but before he got to the table it was filled, as were the remaining spots at that table. The closest empty seat was two tables away. So he hurried over to it before it was gone.

He sat facing her back, a good vantage point. Even when she was that far away from him, his keen eyes caught every detail, each strand of blonde hair tucked in the ponytail, the stitching in her clothes. If he concentrated, Puck was pretty sure he could see the clasp of the fine silver chain around her neck, half hidden by the hood of her jacket.

"Hey, Cole, look at her!" The eager male voice sounded behind him.

Puck ignored them and continued eating. Just two teenaged guys checking out a teenage girl. Normal stuff. Nothing that could possibly include Grimm.

"Who, the redhead?" Wait a minute. The only redhead girl in the cafeteria was Louise, and she was sitting right next to—

"The blonde," The first voice replied.

"Oh yeah, she's hot!" Puck choked on his mashed potatoes. He coughed and pounded his chest. His eyes watered. He was chugging his water when he heard the first guy pipe up again.

"You think I should ask her out?" The water spewed all over the table, and he coughed again, harder.

When the table was clean again, Puck turned to get a look at the losers who were checking out Grimm. They were at the table directly behind him, and they were busy laughing about something stupid, by the looks of it. One guy he recognized, the brown haired one on the left. The other, a tan guy with sandy hair, was new to him, but it didn't matter. They were both smaller and skinnier, and the brown haired guy seemed to have an acne problem. Both of them looked confused when Puck sat down right next to them.

"Hey, we didn't invite you. Get lost," Pizza-face spoke first. By his voice Puck could tell he was Cole, the second speaker. So the other guy must be Loser Number One. The one aiming for Grimm.

"You new?" Puck aimed the question at Sand-head. The boy nodded. Puck grinned. The new ones were always easier to scare.

"Well, as a newbie, you probably haven't heard of a big rule around here." He paused for a moment, watching their reactions. When they stayed silent, he continued.

"You see, there is a certain girl who is off-limits, and that girl happens to be that blonde you were ogling earlier." He leaned in threateningly, lowering his voice to a growl. "And if I catch you anywhere near her, I will tear your limbs from your body and use you as a soccer ball. Got that?"

Cole gulped and nodded, but the sandy haired one, the newbie, spoke up. "Is she your girlfriend or something?"

"Uh, not—not really, no-," Puck stuttered. He cleared his throat. "But it doesn't matter anywa—"

Sand-head cut in. "I think it does. If she's not already taken, nothing's stopping me from going out with her. 'Specially not you."

_Crap. Crap crap crap,_ Puck's mind was running on full gear, but it was coming up blank. _What should I do? _He went over his options quickly.

He could always beat the moron up. But then he could possibly get in trouble, and that wasn't good. Too many questions would be asked, and Cole would be a witness. He could beat both of them up, but that would take more energy, and they would have a better chance of escape.

Or… he didn't want to think about that, but it would probably have better results than the first. Much less likely to get hurt, although that didn't mean it wasn't daunting. But… thinking about it gave him a chill.

Alright then. He would go with the second one. He spoke up. "Fine, whatever. What if she IS taken?"

"Then I would back off, duh. Not gonna mess with anybody else's girlfriend. But she isn't taken, so I think I'll just go ahead and ask her."

"Just TRY and go near my girlfriend, buddy. I dare you." Puck was sure to make his voice as low and threatening as possible.

"You just said she wasn't your girl," the pimply one said.

"I was bluffing. Touch her and you die. Now scram."

They scrammed.

O0o0o0O

Two periods later, and they were back, this time with their buddies.

"What do you losers want?" Puck growled.

The pimply one spoke first. "us guys have a challenge for ya. A bet."

Puck looked at the group blankly, eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What d'you have in mind?"

The sandy haired kid spoke up. "You get her to kiss you, in front of one of us or the school, either one will work. You do that, and none of us'll touch her. Ever."

Ever, huh? That was a long time. But how would he get Grimm to kiss him? Puck had no idea, but he wasn't about to let the morons win.

"Alright. I'll do it."

Another kid piped up. "But there's a time limit. You have until Halloween to do it, or the deal's off. We aren't gonna give you forever. "

Crap. "What time on Halloween?" He needed to know the deadline.

"Midnight."

What was it with humans and midnight? Every single bet he had ever made with a human mentioned midnight somewhere in it. Oh well. He still had plenty of time, even if the deadline was hokey.

"Okay, then. Midnight on Halloween it is."

Sand-head stuck out his hand, and Puck shook it. The deal was struck.

O0o0o0O

"Really? You did it?" The pixies buzzed around his head excitedly. They tittered. "Ooh hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo! This is gonna be fun!"

"No it's not," Puck hissed. "This is serious, you imbeciles. If I mess this up, everything I strive for as Grimm's protector will crumble. If I make the smallest mistake, the whole thing's screwed. It'll go up in smoke."

"Relax," They chirped. "How long do you have, anyway?"

"Not counting today, three weeks." Three weeks to do an impossible task.

"Three weeks is plenty of time!" the pixies' chatter buzzed through his room. "You'll have her smooching all over you in no time! You're the boss! The king! Why wouldn't she fall for you?"

"It's not as easy as that. Grimm would be highly suspicious of anything like that. It's highly improbable that I can just go in and…" He broke off, blushing. He had just been reminded of the time he HAD just gone and kissed her. The resulting blow to the stomach had given him a bruise the size of a small watermelon.

His minions tittered again, laughing at their leader's embarrassment. "You'll just have to be coy about it, then," they hummed. "Don't let the girl know what you intend. Have her asking questions, and the goal will be hidden from her sight. If she doesn't figure it out, you have a better chance of winning."

"Okay then. What do you suggest I do first?"

"How would we know?" They cackled. "Our expertise is in the military field, not matters of the heart. But we know someone with more experience."

"Who?"

"The small one who gives us gummy worms."

"You mean the Marshmallow?" They nodded.

"No way! I tell Marshmallow and the thing is screwed before it's started! That girl couldn't keep her mouth shut to save her life. Not gonna happen."

"Then the other small one, the quieter one."

"Red, huh? Hmm, yeah, I could see her keeping her mouth shut, but I'm not sure she'll have good advice. Maybe if I get really desperate."

And with that, Puck started towards the door into the hallway. A few of the pixies stuck their head out after him, watching his departure. They watched with unblinking eyes as their leader tripped over the rug, fell down the bottom stairs, and landed awkwardly on Sabrina Grimm, the very person he had been avoiding for the last three hours.

He stammered, clumsily trying to get off the girl. "Uh, sorry, I didn't see…" He stopped, realizing the awkward way he was positioned over her. She seemed to notice it too, from the blush that was spreading across her face.

They both stared for a moment, both of them silent, and again Puck was reminded once again of the previous time that happened, and what had occurred before.

"Uh, I should, uh, get up….," He trailed off, feeling stupid.

Grimm coughed. "Yeah, that would be great, thanks."

Puck scrambled inelegantly off of her, and they both got up and went separate directions. And hidden on the landing above, unbeknownst to the pair, the pixies laughed at the foolishness of their master and the human girl he called Grimm.

**AN: I KNOW HOW IT ENDS! After writing thins, I know EXACTLY how this will end. WOOT!**


	3. Tensions Rising and Faces Burning

**AN: YES! Mua haha! I know exactly what to do! I am so happy; I have everything planned out, mostly. That's way better than what normally happens.**

**Thank you guys for reviewing, and sorry for ripping on you…. I love you all! HEHEEEE, I'm so happy!**

**Guess what I forgot the last two chapters? DISCLAIMER: I do not own Sabrina or Puck or Daphne or Red or any of the Grimms, but I own my plot and my dignity, if that counts for anything. (;.)9**

**Also, this chapter starts out as Puck POV and then goes to Sabrina POV after the first O0o0o0O.**

Great. He leaves her alone for five minutes to go to the bathroom and the losers from yesterday start swarming.

"Hey!" his shout stopped them. He narrowed his eyes at them. "What are you bottom feeders doing here? I thought you said you'd leave her alone." They stopped inches from Sabrina, their fingers almost on her.

"_We will never leave her alone. She will be ours, and there is nothing you can do about it_," they hissed. As a group, they turned towards him, knocking him aside with a giant fist. How did they get so big? He was taller than them, last time he checked.

The group took a step forward, and then another, then more, with each step melding together into one giant entity. It was huge, towering high above him. Sabrina was nowhere in sight. He was alone with the monster.

"_You can't succeed, and she will be ours. You are weak. We are strong, and she will be ours. She will be ours_."

_SHE WILL BE OURS._

Puck woke up, breathing hard. Nothing was there; he was alone in his room. The trampoline rippled as he got up off of it. The trampoline was old, but it still looked as good as it did the day he'd moved in. Still bouncy, too.

He looked around again, heaving a sigh of relief that he was alone. That thing, reaching for Sa-Grimm-he was awake, he had to call her Grimm. But that thing was just a dream. All of it; all of it was a dream- it wasn't real. Grimm was safe, away from the grabbing fingers of that nightmare.

If one good thing came of that dream, it was that his determination to win was reinforced. He would not let anyone of those morons anywhere near Grimm as long as he was still breathing.

So what should he do to win? What would his plan be? He had three weeks to get Grimm to kiss him. And not just kiss him; kiss him in public.

He was doomed.

O0o0o0O

Sabrina was in the kitchen eating her Rice Krispies when Puck came in. "Morning," he said lazily. She ignored him, distracted.

Puck had been acting weird for the past few days, bumping into things and avoiding her. And on Tuesday, when he had fallen on her, usually would have brushed it off and acted arrogant. She smiled, remembering his face when he realized who he had landed on. It was really funny.

But it was unlike him to act so confused. What was going on?

An alarm went off, signaling it was time to head for school. Puck pushed his bowl away, and the two of them were out the door. Once outside, Puck grabbed her and took off, beating his huge, pink streaked wings in the crisp October air.

"Hey Grimm," Puck's voice sounded in her ear.

"What?"

"You look nice today."

What? Sabrina could feel the blood rising to her face. Why had he said that? And why was she blushing? Gah, she hated mornings.

O0o0o0O

They landed in the woods near the school, pausing a moment before heading into the crowd. They had barely made it into the fray before they saw Louise barreling towards them, Stephanie in tow.

"HEY GUYS! Guess what?" Louise grinned eagerly.

"What?"

"We already figured out what we're going to be for Halloween. So what are you guys gonna be?"

"I was planning on a Witch, nice and simple," Sabrina replied.

"Old school. Nice." The redhead turned to Puck. "What are you gonna be?"

"Uh, well, I don't really know yet," he said, shrugging.

Louise grinned evilly. "I have the perfect idea. You should be a fairy princess!"

Sabrina snorted. _She's pretty close to the truth, actually…_

Puck groaned. "Fine, I'll be a… a vampire. How's that?"

Louise shrugged. "Fine by me."

Suddenly Stephanie shrieked and pulled on the tall girl's arm, positioning herself behind her. "Hide me!"

"From what?"

"Alec!" The muffled cry came from behind Louise's back. "He's right there!"

The group looked around. The only guy directly in front of them was a tanned, and muscle-y black haired guy in a leather jacket.

"You mean him? The guy in the leather jacket?"

"Yes, don't let him see me!"

Louise laughed. "Okay, he's gone now. You can come out, Steph." Stephanie moved from behind the redhead. "You have a crush on him?"

Stephanie nodded. Sabrina laughed. "You should have told us, you know. We wouldn't have told."

"I know… it's just, I forgot about it till he walked by just now!" The girls just laughed harder.

O0o0o0O

"EH! Goodfellow!" Puck looked around to see a short blonde girl come running towards the group at full speed. "We need to talk! You too, Louise!"

They complied, following the loud girl to a discreet tree, stopping when she turned around. "Okay, wimp. What are you doing?"

Puck just looked at her blankly. "What?"

Louise spoke up. "You can't just do that Meagan. Give the guy some warning before you corner him." She turned to Puck. "Just ask Sabrina out already!"

"What?"

She sighed; Meagan slapped her forehead. "Idiot, we know all about the bet from Will," Meagan explained impatiently. "You could totally win if you just asked her out. Simple, but instead you've been standing around for two days. Get a move on already."

"Will told you, huh? …jerk." They grinned. Louise waved her hand. "I sit right next to him in art; he told me all about it." She said breezily. "…although, I don't know where Meagan heard about it. Heh, I'm not gonna ask." She shrugged. Meagan laughed.

"So when are you gonna ask her? You can't wait forever, you've got less than three weeks. You should probably do it sooner, less time for the other guys to try and ask her out before you."

Puck shrugged, uncertain. "I don't kn- wait, what? Who's trying to ask her out?"

"Right over there," Meagan replied, pointing. He turned to see the sandy haired guy standing close to Grimm. Really close.

O0o0o0O

"C'mon, Stephanie. You really forgot about a crush?" Sabrina shook her head, smiling at her friend's embarrassed smile.

"Well, there was just so much going on…," Stephanie trailed off, shrugging. Sabrina patted her on the back comfortingly, trying to hide a smile.

"Good morning." An unfamiliar voice sounded behind them. Sabrina turned and found it was a tall, muscular, sandy haired boy smiling at her. "You're Sabrina Grimm, right?"

She nodded. "Yeah."

"Nice to meet you. I'm Evan." There was the smile again.

Stephanie coughed. "Well, I'm just gonna go. Bye!" And she was gone, leaving silence behind her.

Evan spoke up. "I was wondering, if you're not seeing anybody -"

"I'm sorry," Sabrina cut in. "I don't feel like being emotionally attached to anybody just now. My schedule is crazy enough as it is. Nothing against you, ya know?"

His face darkened, though the smile remained. The effect was slightly creepy. "I see."

Sabrina smiled apologetically. "Good. Maybe we could be friends?"

"It's fine. He's got his claws in you anyway." He stalked off, and she was left wondering exactly who he was talking about.

"Hey." Puck was there beside her, an urgent look in his eyes. "What did that guy say to you?"

"He just asked me out-"

"WHAT?" Puck was fuming.

"I told him no, and he just walked off. What's your deal? It was nothing important."

"It's nothing," he said gruffly. "C'mon, the bell's about to ring."

She followed, wondering just what was going on.

**AN: Not as long as the last chapters, sorry, but this is all that I needed to get in for this chapter. I will update soon, but I have another story I need to update too, so it's gonna get crazy. Sorry if it takes me a while to update!**


	4. A Change of Mood OR Plan B

**AN: So, I realized today that I gave myself two weeks to write three weeks. I pretty much screwed myself right there, so to come up with a solution: I am going to write the next chapter. **

**Okay, guys. WILL IS NOT THE BAD GUY. Will is Louise's friend in art who has a crush on a different girl, so he isn't interested in Sabrina in the first place. EVAN, on the other hand, is the creepy one. He is the one who started the idea of a bet. **

**Also, I am getting tired of telling you guys which POV each part is, so I think I'll let you guys figure it out for yourselves. Should be pretty easy to tell. :]**

**And a note to the anonymous reviewer: Puck and Sabrina are more mature cuz they're in high school. I figured that if Puck kept growing, he would eventually get a little more mature. It was bound to happen sometime. I'm glad you like the story, I'm trying my best to get it done the best I can with my schedule. **

**In the words of another (and rather more famous) FF author: ONWARD! **

A week. A whole week had passed by, and still he hadn't made any progress. And the losers were complete liars, as it turned out. After that creep had asked Sabrina out, Puck had confronted them in a rage. He found them hanging out behind the school talking. They shut up when he got near them, though.

"You morons said that you wouldn't go near her. What's the deal?" he growled.

They weren't intimidated in the least. "We never said that we would wait till Halloween to ask her out. Three weeks is way too long to just sit around. And besides, why would we let you win anyway?" They grinned, and Puck could barely stop himself from murdering the twits.

That had been a week ago. He had less than two weeks left. Opportunities had come, but he had blown every one of them. That time standing in front of the school, when Grimm was waiting beside him, only a finger's breadth away. Or when they were talking, doing nothing, standing around. Every time he had missed it, overthinking his strategy. He was beginning to suspect that winning the bet would take a little effort.

And for what? Why was he so committed to winning that bet? A quiet voice in the back of his mind answered, but Puck ignored it. _I'm doing this to protect Sabrina_, he thought firmly.

Yes, he had said it. The only name he didn't normally use for her, and he had said it. It didn't matter anymore anyway. What had started out as a provocation had become habit, and now the habit was getting tiresome.

Why bother calling her Grimm anymore? She didn't care; it hadn't gotten a rise out of her. She hadn't even cared. The first time he called her Sabrina again, she just looked at him for a moment and went on eating her toast. The way Puck saw it; it made no difference what he called her anymore, as long as he won that bet. He would not let any of the twits in the school go anywhere near her.

O0o0o0O

What was up? Why was that Evan guy so… stalker-ish? He had been everywhere Sabrina went the past few days, but had never said anything, never approached her. It was unsettling, but not a particularly bad turn of events. Evan was too eager, though he tried to hide it beneath that smile. It was a good thing to have him keep his distance.

And then there was Puck. What was up with him? He was being so … nice. It was unnerving. Usually the two of them had a disagreement every few minutes, but the past few days, it seemed like the Trickster King was going out of his way to be pleasant to her. What was he playing at?

Her science teacher continued her lecture. "So if the chlorine atom comes in contact with the ozone molecule, it acts as a catalyst. So what does a catalyst do? Victoria?"

A brunette girl, hair twisted in a long braid, answered. "Isn't it when, you know, something sets off a change but then comes out the same way as before?"

"That's it exactly. Good job." Victoria smiled and shrugged, and Sabrina groaned to herself. She was not doing so well in science. In fact, it was her worst subject, with World History running a close second. It seemed like the only subject that wasn't killing her was English Honors. At least something was working out.

The class ended soon enough, and she saw Louise in the hallway, Victoria walking a little behind her. The tall girl grimaced when she saw Sabrina. "You're not doing that well either?"

Sabrina nodded, shrugging.

"In what subjects?"

Sabrina counted them off on her fingers. "Let's see… World History and Science. I'm doing pretty well in Geometry and English, so that's it. What for?"

"Well, we need a tutor for Science," Louise jerked a thumb at Victoria— "You need a tutor for World History," she pointed at herself- "And I'm sure Robin would need your help with something. So we join up after school for it. Sound good?"

Sabrina shrugged again. "I'm up for it," she said. "How about tonight?"

"I should be able to do it if I came after my Youth thingy," she said slowly. "So, how about eight?"

"Works for me." Victoria nodded, and they stopped. They had walked straight to English without paying attention.

"Whoa, nice." Louise grinned, and the three girls walked in and took their seats, Victoria and Louise together at the front while Sabrina had chosen a seat in the middle, a good view of the room.

Puck came in just as the bell rang, dropping into the seat next to her. "So, what'd I miss?"

"Nothing much," she replied. "Class hasn't even started yet."

"Oh."

_What is up with him? _She wondered. Something weird was going on. What would possibly make Puck change his behavior like that?

The rest of the day passed like that, with Puck randomly being nice to her and seeing random flashes of her new stalker around the school. Sabrina was on edge, snapping at the unfortunate kid that asked her for a pencil, anyone who came near.

It was not looking like a good day.

O0o0o0O

"Hey Sabrina." She didn't bother responding. She didn't even lift her head off the desk. Puck scowled. She was going to make them late for dinner if she got herself detention. He would have to stay with her so he could fly her home afterwards. He didn't care if he was trying to get on her good side or not, he was going to wake her up. No way would he stay at school any longer than he had to.

"Brina, get up. The bell's gonna ring any minute now."

That got her up. "What did you call me?" Sabrina looked at him blankly.

"I called you Brina," Puck replied, slowly and deliberately. "Want me to repeat it? Say it slower?"

Sabrina scowled, though she was obviously confused. "Don't use that name."

"Why not?" It was his turn to be confused now.

"It's unsettling. It's weird enough that you're calling me Sabrina on a regular basis now. I don't need the insane factor to get any bigger, thank you." She was surprisingly snappy today.

_Well, if she wants normal, she gets normal,_ Puck thought rebelliously. _No more being so nice, then. It's definitely not working. I'll go back to the old routine, then. _

"Well, that's nice, but I'm not staying here any longer than I have to, so you are coming with me. Right now." He grabbed her arm, dragging her out of her chair and out the door, only letting go when they were in the woods. Then he grabbed her around the waist and took off, ignoring her protests.

"Hey! Put me down, you scummy sack of stupid!" She fumed. Puck smirked. "I seem to remember you calling me that before. You losing your touch or something?"

Sabrina scowled. "It's not MY fault I'm all screwed up today. SOMEONE acting so out of character has completely messed up my nerves. I don't have any energy left for snarky comments, so just shut up."

He obliged, and they flew in silence for a few minutes. After a while, though, Puck felt Sabrina sigh. She rubbed her forehead and grimaced.

"Sorry for snapping at you, but you've been so weird lately and it put me completely on edge. What were you planning here?" She looked at him, eyes narrowed. He grinned again. This was fun, and it gave him a chance to cover up.

"Nothing really, it was just fun to see you squirm," he lied.

Sabrina scowled. "Well stop it. It's getting on my nerves."

"Fine. It was getting old anyways." That part wasn't a lie. Constantly being nice was getting old, especially when it only got him further from his goal. At least he could go back to before without too many questions.

Hopefully.

O0o0o0O

Only five days. At least he was getting somewhere. Sabrina had finally relaxed around him again, and things were going back to normal. He might be close to success. Puck decided that it was time for celebration. Might as well relax and listen to his playlist.

He lay in the front yard, earbuds in, watching the clouds. One of them looked like a troll, chasing a rabbit in a tutu over a tree that looked like Will.. Another looked like a bear mauling a heard of cats.

The song ended, and another one began. It was one of his favorites, although he wouldn't admit it. Daphne had forced them all to watch Treasure Planet a few months before. The song had kind of stuck to him after that.

_I am a question to the world,  
>Not an answer to be heard.<br>All a moment that's held in your arms.  
>And what do you think you'd ever say?<br>I won't listen anyway…  
>You don't know me,<br>And I'll never be what you want me to be._

_And what do you think you'd understand?_  
><em>I'm a boy, no, I'm a man..<em>  
><em>You can take me and throw me away.<em>  
><em>And how can you learn what's never shown?<em>  
><em>Yeah, you stand here on your own.<em>  
><em>They don't know me 'cause I'm not here.<em>

_And I want a moment to be real,  
>Wanna touch things I don't feel,<br>Wanna hold on and feel I belong.  
>And how can the world want me to change,<br>They're the ones that stay the same.  
>The don't know me,<br>'Cause I'm not here._

_And you see the things they never see_  
><em>All you wanted, I could be<em>  
><em>Now you know me, and I'm not afraid<em>  
><em>And I wanna tell you who I am<em>  
><em>Can you help me be a man?<em>  
><em>They can't break me<em>  
><em>As long as I know who I am<em>

_And I want a moment to be real,  
>Wanna touch things I don't feel,<br>Wanna hold on and feel I belong.  
>And how can the world want me to change,<br>They're the ones that stay the same.  
>They can't see me,<br>But I'm still here._

_They can't tell me who to be,_  
><em>'Cause I'm not what they see.<em>  
><em>And the world is still sleepin',<em>  
><em>While I keep on dreamin' for me.<em>  
><em>And their words are just whispers<em>  
><em>And lies that I'll never believe.<em>

_And I want a moment to be real,_  
><em>Wanna touch things I don't feel,<em>  
><em>Wanna hold on and feel I belong.<em>  
><em>And how can they say I never change<em>  
><em>They're the ones that stay the same.<em>  
><em>I'm the one now,<em>  
><em>'Cause I'm still here.<em>

_I'm the one,_  
><em>'Cause I'm still here.<em>  
><em>I'm still here.<em>  
><em>I'm still here.<em>  
><em>I'm still here.<em>

The last few notes muffled the sounds of footsteps approaching. It wasn't until he felt something bump his side that he realized Sabrina had sat down near him. He pulled the earbuds out.

"It's so peaceful out today," she said wistfully, eyes on the clouds. "Wish that would happen more often. Right now, with the Halloween stuff coming up, everyone is so stressed out. I just wish they would all take a break and stop taking out their frustrations on everyone else. If they took a few minutes to realize that I do NOT want to deal with their problems, we would probably never have an argument in the first place."

Puck hid a grin. _Like that would stop an argument_. Instead of saying that, he looked at her for a moment, taking in all the details: the rumpled clothes, tired eyes, and frustrated expression, the way she gazed at the sky above. She looked beat, which was unusual for her. The stress of the past few days must have really been dragging at her. "Stressed out, huh?"

She looked at him, sighing. "Yeah. Apparently all the teachers want to assign all the homework possible before the Festival, and on top of that, every person I might know that's on a committee for something or other wants to see me and whine about all the work they have to do."

"I bet THAT went well."

She laughed. "No kidding. I've yelled at most everybody who came near me today. I don't think they appreciated the gesture."

Puck grinned. "Well, the day's almost over, so why not ditch the homework for a little while and relax?" He held out a bud, and she took it and inserted it in her ear. Puck turned up the volume a little as the next song played.

_She has no problem with secrets  
>She knows how to keep them<br>She never felt the need to let them show  
>And I've had no trouble with speaking<br>Or trusting my instincts  
>That maybe this is one that I should know<br>But as I'm waiting there  
>The devil on my shoulder stares<br>Laughing that the one thing I can't get  
>Is what I need<em>

_She, She is the words that I can't find_  
><em>How can the only thing that's killing me make me feel so alive<em>  
><em>And I couldn't speak<em>  
><em>I couldn't breathe to save my life<em>  
><em>All of my chances swim like sinking ships<em>  
><em>This time it's it<em>  
><em>I'll drown or make her mine<em>

Sabrina paused and looked at him. "Uh, isn't this that Parachute song?" she asked, confused. "Why is it on your iPod?"

Puck blushed. "It's mellowing. I think about that poor sap and his lost chances, and I pity the guy."

"Pity?" She looked surprised. "I would've thought you'd call him an idiot, for even thinking about a girl like that."

"Nah. More like a loser. He sings about the chances he's getting and then he's not taking them. I don't get why he doesn't just speak up and say something. "

"But he does. At the end he says he's going to tell her, so it means he's trying."

Puck shrugged. "He hasn't said anything before, and it takes the threat of drowning to tell her? The guy's obviously a loser."

"Well, I think it's a romantic song, because he's getting so tripped up about it. So he's not a complete loser."

They sat, listening to the song, and it was a while before Sabrina spoke. "What if there were special circumstances?"

Puck looked up. "Huh?"

"Well, what if she was his best friend?" She continued, not looking at him. "It might be hard to break what was already there."

"But what if they didn't break what was already there? What if they added to it?" He leaned close to her, and she looked up. Their faces were inches apart.

"Then I guess," Sabrina said slowly, "That it would be a million times better." The space between them was gone, and he kissed her.

_Wait_, he thought. She's _supposed_ _to_ _kiss_ me _in_ _public_.

He mentally shrugged. _Oh well. _He wasn't going to ruin this for a stupid bet. It just wasn't worth it.


	5. Demands, Dragons, and Root Beer Freezes

**AN: YES, only five more days till Halloween! I can barely wait!**

… **Oh wait. I have to get the rest of this story up before then. CRAP! I better get started...**

**Warning: this is a slight filler. I will fill in with the Halloween action tomorrow/Friday, all right? I have to get some school stuff done too, so please be patient. :)**

Sabrina sighed, looking at the papers in front of her. All of her science notes for that chapter lay in front of her, sitting expectantly on the desk.

"All right, everyone," Their science teacher interrupted the chatter of the other students. "I'm going to give you ten minutes to study before the quiz, and you may work with a partner. Please keep all noise to a minimum."

Sabrina looked up to see Louise, Victoria, and Meagan walking over to her seat. "Hey guys," she greeted wearily. "Thanks for helping me study. I really need it."

Louise shrugged, and Victoria smiled. "You don't really need it. You can remember facts pretty well, as long as you read them multiple times. So this should be pretty easy. You've gone over the facts enough. The extra studying isn't even needed."

"You think so?" The brunette nodded. Sabrina turned to the other two. "What about you guys?"

Louise grinned. "Crammed last night. I'll be fine."

Meagan shrugged. "I'm good, too."

"And Tori definitely doesn't need to study any more today," Sabrina said. "So why are you guys here?"

Louise leaned in conspiratorially. "We want the details. Dish."

"What?" Sabrina was confused. Details of what?

Meagan and Victoria nodded at each other. "We know something is up. What happened with you and Robin?"

"What? Nothing happened!" She blushed furiously. Meagan grinned. "Honey, we know something happened. You have _the_ _look_."

"The what now?" Sabrina was confused. "What look?"

The girls sighed. "You know," Victoria urged. "You look like you've gotten something you've been waiting for. _That_ look."

"Ah." Huh. That's what she looked like, eh? _Didn't know I was that easy to read,_ Sabrina thought.

"Well?" All three girls looked at her expectantly. "What happened?"

"Nothing happened! Nothing at all!"

"If you say so," Louise said, grinning. "We know the truth."

O0o0o0O

Puck sat in the library, idly reading a graphic novel. It was something Louise had recommended to him. He had tried to explain about his allergic reaction to books, but she had laughed. "You'll like this one. Not really like a book, in a way," she said, and the girl had been right. It wasn't anything like the books that lay around at home, it was cooler. Pictures of guys with swords were on nearly every page, and there were even some guns, too. It was literary gold. No boring passages describing boring stuff.

He was just turning the page to the climax when a hand slammed on the table in front of him.

"ALL RIGHT, GOODFELLOW. Spill it. Now." Meagan stared down at him, Victoria and Louise right behind her.

"What?" Spill what?

"Not you, too! I know BOTH of you guys aren't that forgetful! What happened with you and Sabrina?" the blonde demanded. "We know something happened, now tell us what it is!"

"I'm sorry," he grinned. "Nothing that I can remember. I played a prank on her; she got mad at me, the usual. Nothing to be so eager about."

Meagan scoffed. "You wouldn't be that stupid. You're trying to win a bet here, remember? Get her mad and it's all down the toilet."

"Besides," she added. "We saw her face. Something definitely happened."

Puck sat still for a moment, silent. He had already decided what he would do. He had decided the moment he and Sabrina had kissed. Now he only had to wait.

"We're fine, nothing happened whatsoever. Can you stop bothering me now? I have a book to get back to."

Louise grinned. "Told you it was good. Nobody can deny the power of Rurouni Kenshin." Puck shrugged and grinned back as they walked away.

O0o0o0O

"Sabrina!" Veronica called up the stairs. "Your tutors are going to get here soon and your father and I are going out to dinner and a movie. Daphne and Red are in their room, and Granny Relda went to bed early. Keep an eye on the house while we're gone, and have fun!"

Sabrina stuck her head out her bedroom door. "Okay Mom! See you later, bye!" she answered as Veronica shut the front door and locked it. Twenty minutes later, at exactly eleven seconds to seven, she burst out of her room.

_Ten…_

_Nine…_

_Eight…_

She counted in her head as she ran down the stairs in her black-and-blue socks.

_Six…_

_Five…_

_Four… _

She got to the kitchen, grabbing the popcorn and soda.

_Two…_

_One!_

The doorbell rang just as she was setting the food on the coffee table. "Coming!" She called as she rushed over.

Louise, Meagan, Victoria, Stephanie, and Will were standing on the porch waiting to come in. "Hey guys, come right in. The movie's on the table, could you put it in, Tori?"

"Sure." The brunette girl smiled pleasantly as they filed into the house. Sabrina closed the door behind them, pausing to hear the locks click into place on their own, and then she followed her guests into the living room.

Puck was already on the couch with the popcorn. "Dibs!" He cried, grabbing a handful.

"Hey!" Stephanie protested. "Don't eat it all!" She sat on the couch and reached for the food. Everyone else took a seat as the movie started. "Shh," Louise hissed as the screen went black. The music started, and the narrator began speaking.

"This is Berk," The voice said as an old looking village appeared on the screen. "It's twelve days north of Hopeless and a few degrees south of Freezing to Death. It's located solidly on the Meridian of Misery. My village. In a word? Sturdy, and it's been here for seven generations, but every single building is new. We have fishing, hunting, and a charming view of the sunset. The only problems are the pests. You see, most places have mice or mosquitoes. We have..."

"DRAGONS!" Louise and Stephanie squealed simultaneously. Everyone else grinned and watched the movie.

O0o0o0O

"I love that movie!" Stephanie squealed as she followed Louise into the kitchen. The redhead nodded. "Toothless is amazing," she agreed. "Hey, Sabrina, you got any ice cream?"

"Yeah, let me get it for you," she said, entering behind them. She ruffled in the freezer. "Vanilla or chocolate?"

"Vanilla, thanks."

"No problem, but may I ask why?" Sabrina handed the cold container to Louise, who grinned. "Three words: root beer freezes. You got a blender I could borrow?"

"Right in the cupboard behind you."

"Thanks. Steph, get out the swirly straws, please? And tell Will I need him in here for me too."

"Okay!" the happy girl exited the room, leaving Sabrina and Louise alone. Sabrina wasn't sure she wanted to be alone with the girl right now. She didn't want to be interrogated any further.

Louise smiled. "It's 'kay," she said cheerily. "I know you don't want to talk about it. I can understand that, even if I do want to know what happened. Although, Meagan and Tori are pretty smart. They already have it figured out, so they'll start wondering exactly why you don't want to say anything. Not a good way to start out." She pulled out the blender. "Why do you have books in your kitchen cupboard?"

"They used to be all over the house," Sabrina answered. "It's better now. You're less likely to trip on them."

"Ah," Louise said. "Okay then." She put the ice cream and root beer in the bender, pulsing the mixture till it was creamy. "Where are your cups again?"

"The cupboard to your right, bottom shelf."

"Thanks. Hey Will," she called. "Get in here already." A gangly brown haired boy with gray blue eyes and freckles walked in. "How did you know I was there?"

Louise grinned again. "I saw Stephanie. You know why I want you in here, right?"

Will nodded. "You want me to ask her, right?"

Sabrina was confused. "Ask who?"

"Will has a crush on Tori," Stephanie explained. "We—Louise, Meagan and I—have been trying to get him to ask her out for a month now, since Louise found out."

"Uh huh," Louise agreed. "But he's just too much of a 'fraidy cat to do it. He doesn't believe us when we tell him that it'll be fine."

"But she already has a guy she likes!" Will protested. "She's told me!"

Stephanie smiled. "But if you get to her first, I'm sure she'll say yes!"

"Yeah, out of pity," he groaned. "I'm not gonna do it. It's good enough just to be friends."

"I dunno," Sabrina said. "If you ask her and she says yes, it might be out of pity, sure, but if you don't do it, you'll be living for a long time with the missed opportunity. Either way, you should start a closer friendship first. If she trusts you as a friend, she'll trust you as a boyfriend."

Everyone just looked at her blankly. "What?" She said defensively.

Louise snickered, covering her face. "Nothing. I just didn't think you would be the one to give romantic advice."

Stephanie and Will just sat there vacantly, a look of confusion on their faces. "Huh?"

Sabrina sighed, rubbing her forehead. "Nothing. Don't mind me." She turned to Louise. "Are the floats done yet?"

"They're freezes," the girl reminded. "And they're almost done. Steph?" Louise turned to her friend, who handed her the swirly straws. Louise plopped them in the cups put the drinks on a tray. "Now they're done."

"All right!" Stephanie punched the air. Sabrina laughed and followed them out to the living room. Puck was still on the couch, finishing the fourth bowl of popcorn. Meagan was sitting on the back, drinking her Mountain Dew. Victoria was snuggled into the corner of the couch, toying absently with a loose thread on her multicolored socks. She looked up when they four of them walked in. "Hey guys."

"Here they are," Louise beamed. "Taste the awesomeness!" Everybody took a mug.

Will drank some. "Good grief, what did you put in this? Ambrosia?"

Puck coughed, trying to hide a snicker. "Well, it is good," he admitted. "But what's with the swirly straws? Aren't they a little much?"

"Are you kidding me?" Louise asked incredulously. "They're what make it fun!"

Twenty minutes and two mugs later, Meagan, Victoria, Stephanie, Louise and Will were out the door, heading for Louise's car. "Bye guys! See you tomorrow, all right?"

"You bet," Sabrina called back, waving. "See you later!" She closed the front door, ready for the next two days to fly past.


	6. Attempted Myth or Truth? And Eggings

**AN: Well, my legs still hurt from B-ball conditioning, but it's better now. I can walk more, but going up and down stairs and hills is a problem. **

**Sorry this is a day late, but I had an essay due last night and it took me till 11:00 pm to finish, so I had to go to bed directly afterwards. And tehn tonight I had to go and babysit eight kids with my sister. **

**MJ: Thanks, I'm glad you like the fanart. :D And I am planning to do that one, I even have the sketch ready. I just need to scan it and color etc. May I ask what your dA username is? **

**OK! Here we go! **

_Kenshin hefted his sword, all friendliness gone from his eyes as he watched, helpless, as Kaoru was snatched down the river's current. 'Jin-E, you monster!' He shouted. _

_The evil man just laughed, his blood red eyes focused on Kenshin. 'Come to the shrine in one hour. I will be waiting.' And in an instant, Kaoru and the assassin were gone._

_Keshin stood silent for a moment. 'Kaoru-dono, do not worry,' he murmured, holding tight to the blood stained ribbon in his hand. 'This one is coming soon. That is a promise.' His hand clenched, and he turned around, only to be confronted with a -_

"Hey Puck!" The fairy nearly fell off the trampoline, book in hand. It was the third volume he had borrowed from Louise in two days, and he was addicted. It wasn't the absence of long passages that interested him exactly, more like the excitement he could read straight from the character's faces, instead of having to be told. Of course, the swords were a nice bonus. Nearly every chapter had a new battle. The book was perfect for him.

"Yeah?" He called, rolling off the trampoline easily. The woods around the clearing had already turned colors; bright crimson, deep yellow, and warm orange leaves littered the ground and flew in the air on an invisible breeze. The birds twittered quietly in the branches, as Sabrina wandered down between the trees.

"Is your costume ready for tonight?" She asked. Her own costume consisted of a blue and black striped shirt under a gray vest, a silver skirt with ruffly edges, purple and black striped stockings, dark knee high boots, and an old gray witch's hat. All of the items had been either in her closet or the attic, and looked good on her in the twilight of the forest.

"Yep," Puck replied. His costume was simple—black sweater, blood red pants, and a makeshift cape made from an old blanket, which had also been found in the attic. Judging from the way Sabrina was staring, he must have looked pretty good.

"I still can't believe Daphne is going as a fairy princess," He scowled. "Is she _trying_ to offend me?"

"She's only ten. A princess looks like a pretty good option at that age." She shrugged noncommittally.

"But did she have to put so much emphasis on the fairy part?" Puck groaned. "I wince every time I hear it."

Sabrina half smiled and shrugged again. "Not much I could do, anyway. She doesn't listen to my clothing advice, in the rare event I try and give her any."

"Well, at least Red picked something less offensive." He sighed. "I hope."

The quiet girl had been having trouble deciding what to dress up as for Halloween for a few weeks. Everyone gave a few suggestions, but they were all either 'maybe's (in the case of the ghost idea) or 'no way on earth's (in the case of the gorilla idea). Daphne had come up with some of the most interesting ideas lately, like a lollipop, or a TV, or an ice cream cone. All had been vetoed.

"Actually," Sabrina started warily, "She just told us what she's going to be."

"And what is she, exactly?"

She bit her lip, obviously trying to hide a grin. "A fairy godmother."

Puck slapped his forehead in exasperation. "Great. TWO imposters."

"Well, if you think about it, Halloween is like a National Imposter Day," Sabrina said thoughtfully. "Everyone is trying to dress up as something or someone that they're not."

"Well, yeah," he replied, "But they don't need to be so blazingly obvious. I'm sure every Everafter in this town will know what they're imitating."

"I think they'll be more annoyed at all the people trying to dress up like them."

"Oh."

Sabrina grinned. "Well, it doesn't matter anyway. I'm sure in your disguise, no one will recognize you."

"Of course not," he replied, acting offended. "I am the Trickster King. Halloween is my holiday. It was _made_ for me." He grinned. "I even grew these babies especially for tonight." He pointed to his canines, which had grown a quarter inch and were wickedly pointed.

"Wait, you can do that?" Sabrina looked impressed. "I thought you could only change into animals, fly and breathe fire." She ticked the list off her fingers.

"Not breathe fire, BURP fire. Big difference. Breathing fire hurts and is cancerous. Burping fire is a completely different process. And yeah, I can only do those, but that's just the basic description. I can also alter parts of my appearance to those of animals, like my teeth here." He grinned again, and his canines gleamed a flashing white.

"So, which animal? Bat or wolf or what?"

"Actually, I'm not quite sure. I was just concentrating on the pointy bit, not really any animal in particular. "

"Really? I didn't know you could do that," She said, looking intrigued. "I thought you had to focus on the change to make it work."

_It's not really that necessary, _he thought_. I mean, I did grow up unintentionally. It wasn't like I had wanted to stop being eleven forever. _

But then again, he hadn't wanted to watch as Sabrina grew up without him. It hadn't been a conscious choice, not really, and he had known that.

_Shut up_, he told himself. Thinking about something he had no conscious control over was not going to change the current situation.

"Nope. Now, are you ready to go or not?" Puck asked, grinning crookedly at her. "I have some candy to go pick up."

O0o0o0O

"Hey guys!" Sabrina turned around to see Louise running towards them, dragging Stephanie along behind her. Meagan and Victoria were close after them. "We finally found you!"

"You gonna join us?" Sabrina asked. Louise nodded, and Stephanie beamed. "Of course we are!"

"Okay then," Puck said, and they wandered over to the next house. The yard was littered with dead leaves and toys. Daphne was the first to the porch, Puck and Red coming second. A harrowed looking man in his forties opened the door.

"Trick or Treat!" The girls shouted.

"Give me candy," Puck said nonchalantly.

The man frowned at him. "Aren't you a little old to be trick or treating?"

Puck smirked. "Trick, or treat. Your choice."

The man shook his head. "Sorry son. I only have enough candy to give to the little kids." He dropped some Snickers bars into the girls' bags.

"Hey!" Daphne protested. "I'm ten!" The man ignored her and shut the door.

Sabrina and the rest of the group stood on the sidewalk, laughing at Puck's misfortune as the three of them walked back down the driveway.

"It's okay, Robin. There's always the next house," Victoria said, grinning.

"Okay," he said. "Just give me a minute. I have to tie my shoe." He kneeled on the ground and played with his laces.

"Alright." The group moved on, but Sabrina stopped and watched him. He reached into his bag and pulled out something small and white and stood up.

_No way,_ she thought. _He's not._

Puck lifted his arm and took careful aim.

_He _is_, the moron. _

"HEY!" she shouted, striding over. "What do you think you're doing? We do not egg people's houses!" She smacked the egg from his hand, and it splattered on the ground, yellow and gooey.

He protested. "The twit wouldn't give me candy!"

"That's not a reason to egg his house!" Sabrina wanted to smack him. "You know what, just go. Move." She pointed to the group, and he hustled over. She followed him, scowling.

The other girls were laughing, holding their sides and gasping for air. "I can't believe you were gonna egg that guy's house!" Louise wiped a tear from her eye, gasping for breath. "What are you, three?"

Puck scowled and moved on.

O0o0o0O

The night went on like that, getting candy at some houses and being turned down at others. Sabrina had to stop Puck several times from his attempted egging, once for a dentist who was giving out toothbrushes, and more times for the couples giving out sugar free gum. Of course, the victims themselves never had a clue about what was going on.

Finally, it was time to drop Daphne and Red off at home and head to the dance. "Alright, kiddies," Sabrina said briskly. "Time to head back."

Daphne pouted, and Puck groaned. "We can't stop yet! I haven't filled my bag!"

She looked at him. "How can you look like a fifteen year old and yet still talk like you're five?"

He scowled. Daphne broke in, trying to change to a less prickly subject. "Hey, P- Robin, tell me a story!" The little girl still wasn't used to using the pseudonym.

"All right," he said. "Here's a true one. It's about Halloween got started."

"Yeah!" Daphne squealed, excited.

"So a long time ago, about seven hundred years or so, there were these people called the Celtics," He began.

Daphne's face was screwed up in confusion. "Like the basketball team?"

"No, those guys come later. These suckers lived around France and Ireland, which was the home of the Fae. Fae is different from Faerie, another, slightly different kingdom.

"So the king of Faerie, Oberon, had two sons. One son was obedient and smart, and the other was strong and pretty much awesome. The older son, the awesome one, was given another title: the Trickster King.

"But the Trickster King was just too cool for his parents to handle, so they sent him on vacation to Fae. Fae and Faerie were on good terms at the time, so it wasn't much of a problem.

"So the Trickster King get to Fae, and it's around Harvest time. So he figures he can go around and join in the celebrations. But the villagers are scared of the new spirit crashing the party. So they bribe the Trickster King to leave them alone.

"'And what would you give me?' he asked. All they had were turnips and a few figs. So the Trickster king takes it and leaves them alone. But the deal only lasts another few weeks. The Trickster King was getting bored, and the only fun thing to do there was pull pranks on the villagers. So the locals hold a big council, and they all go to the Trickster King to try and threaten him into stopping.

"But the fairy was too smart for them; he had them trapped before the saps knew what was happening. They begged and scraped for a while, and eventually the Trickster King made a deal with them: If they would leave out the sweetest figs on their doorstep each year on the night before the harvest festival, he would leave them alone for the rest of the year. But if somebody tried to cheat and didn't leave the offering, he would plague them with traps and misfortune for the rest of their lives.

"So they agreed, and since then, the Celtics have moved from their native lands to America, where some of the people decided they wouldn't pay their dues. So the Trickster King sent some his minions out to collect the candy for him, because the US is way bigger than Ireland. His minions were some of the scariest things out there, like the banshee, the vampire, and the witch.

"Some of the kids thought they would get in on the free food too, so they disguised themselves as the Trickster King's minions and went to every house they could reach in one night and took the offerings from the doorstep."

"The Trickster King didn't get mad?"

"Well, by the time the kids started dressing as his minions, the Trickster King had already returned home. So he didn't know that other people were stealing what was rightfully his, at least, not until some hundred years later, but that's a different story altogether.

"…And that's how Halloween started." He finished triumphantly.

"Because one kid was a punk?" Louise asked.

"Not a kid, a _fairy_. And not just _any_ fairy, he was _royalty_," Puck clarified.

"So he was a stuck up punk." Meagan said.

"Whatever." Puck scowled, and Sabrina snickered.

They were at the front porch of the Grimm house, and Daphne and Red ran up into the house. The two girls waved from the front porch as the group walked away.

Sabrina walked next to Puck, lagging a little behind the rest of the group.

"So that really happened?" She asked.

"Yep," Puck answered, hands in his pockets. "True story, although it was more of a punishment than a vacation. Oberon kept threatening to have me spend time with Moth as a punishment. She would always be so clingy, it was creepy. So I would do anything to stay away from there, but that one time I made too big of a mistake."

"Which was?"

He blushed a little. "I was told to give somebody a potion, but I messed up and gave it to the wrong people. So the whole operation was messed up, and then there was the dude with the donkey head…" He trailed off for a second, but then he laughed.

"That part was funny though. Titania was completely in love for a few days, it was hilarious! And then trying to get the other saps back to normal was a bit hard though. They kept running away from each other, it made it difficult to undo the effects of the potion. The best part was definitely watching Titania become obsessed with a donkey."

"So because of the whole Midsummer's Night Dream incident?"

"Yep."

"You know," Sabrina said thoughtfully, "I never would have thought that something Shakespeare documented would be the indirect cause of an international holiday."

Puck shrugged. "Well, stuff happens sometimes. People fall in love with the wrong people, the guy behind it is sent to the worst stalker imaginable, and a few pagans create a new tradition. Pretty run-of-the-mill."

Ten minutes of contented walking later, and the six of them were at the high school campus, ready for the dance. They showed their tickets (which had been paid for two weeks previous) to the chaperone at the door and walked in.

"Whoa."

That pretty much explained it all.


	7. Harley Spills

**AN: So, I have this pretty much planned out, I only have to get it all in order. Shouldn't be too hard, right? **

**Yeah right. This is me we're talking about here. **

**So, okay. Here we go. Also, I am trying to put random references in this chapter, so review and tell me all the ones you find! I want to know who's been reading/watching the same stuff as me. **

The gym's ceiling and walls were covered in black crepe paper that had been torn at the edges, with star and moon shapes cut out in wide and complicated pentacle patterns. Thin and wispy black gauze hung from the ceiling like swirls of smoke a foot above their heads. A cauldron of dry ice was in the corner with the food, and the cool vapor wafted through the crowd, smelling faintly of blackberries. Neon green stars littered the ceiling above. Pounding music blasted through the giant speakers mounted in the corners.

"Whoa," Stephanie repeated.

"It's not much," Louise said frowning slightly, "But it's all we could get on such a low budget."

"Are you kidding me?" Victoria looked around the gym incredulously. "This is amazing! How did you get the stars on the ceiling?"

"Long story," Louise said. "But don't focus on that, the music's playing, there's food in the corner, and look!" She nudged Stephanie. "I think I see Alec over there!"

Stephanie blushed and made a vague squeaking noise. "I-I-I don't want to go over there alone, go with me!" She pulled on Louise's arm, and they snaked their through the moving crowd.

The music soon enveloped the group, and the next song played loud in Puck's ears.

_I throw my hands up in the air sometimes  
>Saying AYO!<br>Gotta let go!  
>I wanna celebrate and live my life<br>Saying AYO!  
>Baby, let's go!<em>

_I came to dance, dance, dance, dance_  
><em>I hit the floor<em>  
><em>'Cause that's my, plans, plans, plans, plans<em>  
><em>I'm wearing all my favorite<em>  
><em>Brands, brands, brands, brands<em>  
><em>Give me space for both my hands, hands, hands, hands<em>  
><em>Ye, ye<em>  
><em>Cause it goes on and on and on<em>  
><em>And it goes on and on and on<em>

Victoria and Meagan were already dancing, arms in the air, jumping in place in time with the music. Sabrina was nowhere in sight.

_Yeah!_

_I throw my hands up in the air sometimes_  
><em>Saying AYO!<em>  
><em>Gotta let go!<em>  
><em>I wanna celebrate and live my life<em>  
><em>Saying AYO!<em>  
><em>Baby, let's go!<em>

_'Cause we gon' rock this club_  
><em>We gon' go all night<em>  
><em>We gon' light it up<em>  
><em>Like it's dynamite!<em>  
><em>'Cause I told you once<em>  
><em>Now I told you twice<em>  
><em>We gon' light it up<em>  
><em>Like it's dynamite!<em>

_I came to move, move, move, move_  
><em>Get out the way me and my crew, crew, crew, crew<em>  
><em>I'm in the club so I'm gonna do, do, do, do<em>  
><em>Just what the fyo, came here to do, do, do, do<em>

Puck scanned the crowd, trying to see through other people's various costumes. He shoved a guy in a superman suit out of his way as he pushed through the throng.

_Ye, ye_

_Cause it goes on and on and on_  
><em>And it goes on and on and on<em>

_Yeah!_

_I throw my hands up in the air sometimes_  
><em>Saying AYO!<em>  
><em>Gotta let go!<em>  
><em>I wanna celebrate and live my life<em>  
><em>Saying AYO!<em>  
><em>Baby, let's go!<em>

_'Cause we gon' rock this club_

_We gon' go all night_  
><em>We gon' light it up<em>  
><em>Like it's dynamite!<em>  
><em>'Cause I told you once<em>  
><em>Now I told you twice<em>  
><em>We gon' light it up<em>  
><em>Like it's dynamite!<em>

He found her at the punch bowl, pouring herself a serving of the bright green liquid. A chaperone stood at attendance nearby, keeping watch over the food.

"Hey," Puck poked her in the back, and she turned around. "Why aren't you dancing? Tonight's a night to let go, so why aren't you?"

"Why aren't you?" she asked pointedly, taking a sip of her punch. Puck frowned. This was going to be difficult.

_I'm gonna take it all like,_  
><em>I'm gonna be the last one standing,<em>  
><em>I'm alone and all I<em>  
><em>I'm gonna be the last one landing<em>  
><em>'Cause I, I, I Believe it<em>  
><em>And I, I, I<em>  
><em>I just want it all, I just want it all<em>  
><em>I'm gonna put my hands in the air<em>  
><em>Hands in the air<em>  
><em>Put your hands in the air<em>

_I throw my hands up in the air sometimes_  
><em>Saying AYO!<em>  
><em>Gotta let go!<em>  
><em>I wanna celebrate and live my life<em>  
><em>Saying AYO!<em>  
><em>Baby, let's go!<em>

_'Cause we gon' rock this club_  
><em>We gon' go all night<em>  
><em>We gon' light it up<em>  
><em>Like it's dynamite!<em>  
><em>'Cause I told you once<em>  
><em>Now I told you twice<em>  
><em>We gon' light it up<em>  
><em>Like it's dynamite!<em>

"I was looking for you," he pointed out. "Come on, let's dance." Puck grabbed her by the wrist, dragging her to the middle of the floor as the music slowed.

_I need another story  
>Something to get off my chest<br>My life gets kind of boring  
>Need something that I can confess<br>_

"So?" He asked, holding out his hand. She took it, and they swayed slowly together.

_Tell me what you want to hear  
>Something that were like those years<br>I'm sick of all the insincere  
>So I'm gonna give all my secrets away<br>This time  
>Don't need another perfect lie<br>Don't care if critics ever jump in line  
>I'm Gonna give all my secrets away<em>

"Sorry," she apologized as she stepped on his foot. "I never really learned how to dance."

Puck smiled a little. "That's all right, I'll teach you."

"Right now?"

"Sure," He replied. "It's pretty simple, really. All you have to do-," here he took her left arm and put it on his shoulder, "-Is imitate the way I move. I go back—," he took a step backwards, pulling her with him. "-and you move with me. See?"

She nodded, and soon the two of them were moving more smoothly together.

"Wait a minute," Sabrina said suddenly. "When did you learn to dance?"

Puck made a face. "Bad memories. Titania wanted me and Mustardseed to attend more parties and social meetings with her, so she had us learn how to waltz. Mustardseed took to it pretty easily, the jerk. I… well, I didn't usually take enough time to pay attention to the instructor, so Mom had Moth come and visit so she could threaten to make me dance with her. So I cut the pranks and learned in two days."

"Two days? How'd you do it that fast?"

"I didn't want to spend any longer with Moth than I had to. I learned the salsa, the waltz, the jig and the hokey pokey."

"The hokey pokey?" Sabrina half grinned, half scowled at him. "Now you're just messing with me."

He grinned back. "Yep."

The song ended, and the next one started; a fast, low song that was heavy on the bass notes. He and Sabrina separated and they started moving in time with the pounding of the music that echoed through their ears.

O0o0o0O

Sabrina was satisfied with the dance so far. It had pretty good music, and none of the food was spiked (at least, she hoped not). The decorations didn't get in the way of her dancing, and it was cool despite the many people crowded into such a small space. Must have been the dry ice or something.

A slow song ended, and Puck let her go again. "I'll go get something to drink," she said loudly, so he could hear her over the noise of the gym.

"I'll do it," he answered. He left for the refreshments table before Sabrina could protest. She shrugged and headed over to where she could see Louise's tall frame dancing in time with the song. The others were in a circle around a guy dressed as a clown breakdancing on the floor, clapping along with the beat. Sabrina joined the circle, watching as the clown was joined by an Elvis impersonator. The two guys synchronized with each other, doing one handed flips and somersaults.

The last notes of the song played out, and a new one started. Sabrina looked around her, but Puck wasn't visible in the gym full of people. The female voice sang out low and strong, pounding through her ears.

_2 AM and she calls me 'cause I'm still awake  
>"Can you help me unravel my latest mistake?<br>I don't love him, winter just wasn't my season"_

Yeah we walk through the doors, so accusing their eyes  
>Like they have any right at all to criticize<br>Hypocrites, you're all here for the very same reason

A hand tapped her shoulder and she turned. It was Evan, dressed as Harlequin. His multicolored suit looked like it had been colored by a crazed second grader.

"Would you like to dance?" He asked, looking eager.

Sabrina felt a tremor of distaste as he touched her hand again, placing it on his shoulder.

_Cause you can't jump the track; we're like cars on a cable_

_and life's like an hourglass, glued to the table_

_No one can find the rewind button, girl._

_So cradle your head in your hands_

_And breathe, just breathe,_

_Oh breathe, just breathe_

"So," he said conversationally, "How long have you and Robin been together? A day? Two?"

Sabrina flushed. What was he talking about? What did he mean, "together"?

He continued talking while she stayed silent. "I've seen you two. I've been watching how he does it, how he holds onto you, how he talks, even the way he breathes. You fall for all of it, all the brashness, all the pride."

Sabrina squirmed, trying to get away from him. "Let go of me, now." But he only held tighter, pulling her face close to his.

"Well, I can do it better," he said nastily. "And what's more, I mean it."

Sabrina went cold. "What do you mean?"

"You haven't heard? He made a bet; the first one to get you to kiss them…" He paused and let go over her hand, releasing her.

As she turned away from him, the last words hit her ears like shards of ice. "…Gets you."

_But you can't jump the track; we're like cars on a cable,_

_And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table_

_No one can find the rewind button, now_

_Sing it if you understand,_

_and breathe, just breathe_

_oh breathe, just breathe,_

_oh breathe, just breathe,_

_oh breathe, just breathe_

O0o0o0O

Puck pushed through the noisy people, holding the punch up high. "Move it, shorty," he said to a guy in a red cape and a yellow braid, who gave him a death glare and started shouting insults at him. Puck ignored the midget and moved on.

He scanned the crowd, looking for Sabrina's pointy witches' hat. He finally spotted it, heading for the exit in a jerky line.

"Here," he pushed the drinks into the girl next to him. She was dressed all in green, holding a giant sledgehammer in one hand. "Hold these." Puck ignored her protests as he squeezed between a Greek god and a Cleopatra.

In two minutes he was out of the gym, looking out at the forest. What was she thinking, leaving without him? Why was she leaving the dance in the first place?

He spotted a trampled path to his right, a sign of a hasty escape. Puck followed them, pushing through the undergrowth.

_It's no use_, he thought. _The growth is too thick. I'll have to fly_. The pink streaked wings popped out of his back, and he burst into the air. Again he scanned the area.

There she was, pushing through the dark of the trees down and to his left. Puck dived, angling himself so he would land in front of her.

His feet touched the ground, and Sabrina was a few feet away from him, leaning against a tree. "What's up?"

She looked at him, hurt in her eyes and anger in her voice. "What do you care? I don't mean anything to you anyway."

Puck was stunned. "What? I don't care about you? What is wrong with you, Sabrina? You're acting weird."

Her voice was low and cracked with emotion. "Don't call me that anymore. Just don't talk to me. Leave me alone."

He stopped. "What?"

"You know what you did!" She shouted. "You took a bet, and I was the prize! All the things you did… you did them out of greed!"


	8. Trusting a Friend

**AN: GYAH, I need sleeeeeepppp…. Too much time spent doing other things, gosh dangit. I have pictures to finish, homework to do, and basketball tryouts. (See the order it's in? It's slightly indicative of my feeling towards them.) **

**So apparently no one saw any references in the last chapter, so I'll just go ahead and list them all. **

**Pentacle patterns—Bartimaeus Trilogy**

**Neon Green Stars—Curious George (The movie)**

**Guy in Superman suit—Superman, DUH.**

**Puck teaching Sabrina to dance—Random SG fanfictions…. (Hehe, Curlscat)**

**Harlequin—Bartimaeus Trilogy again (book 2)**

**Shorty with a Death Glare—Fullmetal Alchemist (Love you, Ed!) **

**Girl with Sledgehammer—Powerpuff Girls Z **

**Guy dressed as a Greek God -Percy Jackson and the Olympians (Miss those books)**

**Girl dressed as Cleopatra—Kane Chronicles**

"**The growth is too thick, I'll have to fly" – Maximum Ride Quote**

**That's about all of them, really. I wanted to put in some Harry Potter stuff too, but I just couldn't find an opening. **

**Back to the story!**

Sabrina felt the anger rising in her chest. The hurt was pushing through her throat and dissipating in the cold air as she shouted. "You lied to me! About everything!"

Puck winced. "I can explain," He started, but Sabrina cut in.

"Yeah, haven't heard THAT one before! I can't believe that you're still trying to cover up." Her breath was coming hard now, floating in the air in little frosty puffs.

"Sabrina, I was-,"

She wouldn't let him talk. "I thought what you said was real! I fell for it, every little thing, and you—and you…" She stopped, staring straight at him, trying hard to keep the tears from flowing. She couldn't think about what had happened, not now. She didn't want to be reminded of how wonderful it had felt-

Something snapped, and the tears came, leaving hot tracks down her cheeks.

"I believed you," she repeated. Her fists clenched, and she looked at the ground, holding back all the fury and disappointment that was wound up inside of her. "I believed you, and for what? It was all a lie."

"It's not like that." Puck's voice was calm, and Sabrina felt the anger rise again. How could he be so calm, so utterly composed? It was infuriating.

"Then what is it like?" she shot.

Puck's face was impassive, but his fists were clenched by his side. "You don't get it. Every time they looked at you, I could hear what they said, what they wanted… And I wanted to kill them. I tried beating a few of them up, but they just kept coming."

Sabrina stayed silent, her breath coming in visible puffs.

He continued. "And then they offered me the bet, a way to get them away forever. And I took it. Do you think I was stupid for doing it?"

No. This was too confusing. She didn't know who to trust, what to believe. So many people telling her what was really happening, what was the truth?

Puck stood there, gazing at her with those green eyes, and the pain inside knotted. "I'm going home. Tell the others I left."

She turned and ran off, leaving Puck far behind her, stopping only when she reached the edge of the school's parking lot. _I must have run in a circle without realizing it_, she thought to herself. _Oh well. I'll just rest here a bit before running home. No one will see me out here. _

Sabrina sat on the curb, resting her head on her forearms. She was only there for a few minutes before the crunch of pebbles on concrete warned her of someone approaching. She looked up.

Sabrina was surprised to see Louise sit down next to her. "Louise? What are you doing out here?" Had Puck told them she had left already?

The redhead looked at her. "Well," she said, "They were playing a song that wasn't up to my standards, so I left."

"Not up to your standards?"

"It was vulgar and distracting. I want to focus on reason, that little voice in the back of my mind that tells me right from wrong. When something like that song plays, I can't hear it. I'd be lost without that little voice." Louise looked at her hands calmly. "That song wanted to take away one of the most valuable things I have; my judgment. So I left."

Sabrina looked at the pavement, thinking. Maybe she should try that. What was clouding up her judgment, and how could she get away from it?

"Louise, I need advice." The words slipped out. _Oh well, might as well go along with it._

The girl looked at her blankly. "About what?"

"I found that a friend of mine has been, well, not lying exactly, but they haven't been telling me the truth lately. And someone else I know told me about it, and I asked my friend about it, and I was so mad, and it's too late to take way the things I said. I don't know what to do about this."

"Well, who do you know better?"

"What?"

"Who do you trust more?" Louise asked. "Your friend or the acquaintance?"

Sabrina hesitated. "My friend, I guess."

"Then wouldn't it make more sense to trust the person you know better?"

She nodded.

Louise rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Well, it's still your choice here. You could believe the acquaintance, but you would be losing a friend in the process."

"So I should go back?"

"Yep."

O0o0o0O

Puck clenched his fist again, slamming it into the tree in front of him, leaving an imprint of his knuckles in the bark.

How did she find out? He had a suspicion, and a gut feeling that he was right. Only a few people would benefit from her knowing, and that was the twits who gave him the bet in the first place. And the only one in that group with any brains would be Evan, the sandy haired creep who'd wanted to ask Sabrina out in the first place.

His knuckles throbbed, but Puck ignored the pain, punching the tree again. A branch above him snapped and fell, hitting him on the head. He grumbled, rubbing his injury, but he stopped beating the tree.

He sat with his back to it, thinking_. I should have just told her from the beginning,_ he thought. _I could have avoided this crap. _

_Who am I kidding? _Puck groaned. This was so stupid. There was no way he could have avoided this, it was out of his hands. If that twit hadn't told her, she'd have found out about it anyway. Anyone could have told her eventually. And if she had found out after the bet was over, she would have been furious then, too.

Why did he take the bet in the first place? A voice answered, and this time he listened. After all, what it was saying wasn't new; he'd known it for days now.

_Simple, _it said. _You love her. _

Then why was it so hard? Why did it take so much effort to convince her, and so little to take it all away? After all that had happened, she didn't believe him?

Puck closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead. He had no idea what it would take to prove to her that he wasn't lying.

"Puck?" His head shot up. Sabrina was right across from him.

He stayed silent, not wanting to say anything stupid. She was really back?

"I think I understand now," she started. "I thought it over and, well, I trust you more than anyone else. I'm sorry for all the things I said. It just…. It hurt so much, the thought that you were lying to me."

"I'm sorry." That was all he could say? He was such a moron! He wanted to tell her everything, about every time he wished he could say it outright, every time he wished he could tell her the truth. "Protecting you was the most important to me, and it stopped me from seeing that I should have just left you to make your own decision."

Sabrina looked at the ground. "What were the conditions?"

"What?"

"The conditions to the bet. What were they?"

He blushed slightly. "To get you to kiss me in public before midnight on Halloween." Why did she want to know?

Sabrina shook her head. "And you didn't tell me because?"

Puck could feel the heat covering his face. "I thought you'd be angry at me or…" he trailed off, not wanting to say it.

"Too embarrassed?" She supplied, not blushing at all. In fact, she didn't look embarrassed, just annoyed.

Puck nodded, mute.

"All right. I've had enough of this stupid bet. You're coming with me, right now."


	9. A Happily Ever After?

**AN: Well, only this chapter left, if all goes as planned. Let's hope so. **

**I have been semi-grounded, which means I am stuck using my internet-less laptop and my school's computers to do my stories from now on. Oh well. I have to deal, I guess. **

**What d'you guys think of this: a separate story of oneshots from Brina and Puck's first two months at FPLHS? Good idea or no? I'll probably write it anyway, but I want to know what you think. **

**And to all you cheeky people who guessed what was going to happen, :P. Glad to see my plot has become so predictable. Of course, I guess that you could see what would happen from chapter 2… *sigh* **

**SADLY, THIS IS THE LAST CHAPTER, GUYS. **

**Ima- Izzou! /Now- Let's go!/ *clenches fist triumphantly* **

"Where are you going?" Puck walked along behind Sabrina.

She pushed a branch out of her path. "The gym, duh. Where do you think I'm going?"

"But why?"

She stopped and turned to him. "Because I want everyone to know that you've won that bet."

"You don't have to," he said. "The bet isn't important anymore; you should be able to choose what you want."

She looked straight into his eyes. "I am choosing. I want you, and I want everyone else to know it. I want this to end."

He stopped trying to argue with her.

The warmth of the gym was a stark contrast to the chilly air of the forest. A hundred costumed people swarmed in the dark, swaying in pairs to the slow song blasting from the speakers.

Sabrina dragged him through the crowd, pushing the other people out of the way as she headed to the center of the gym. Puck went along with it, still a little surprised that she was doing this. He had told her he was going to let her choose, yes, but he hadn't thought she'd do this.

The throng of people didn't slow her down, either. It just made her tighten her grip on his wrist. He was pretty sure he was going to have a mark there in the morning.

Sabrina led him near where Louise and Stephanie were standing and stopped, beckoning to them. Sabrina said something, but Louise shook her head; she couldn't hear her. Sabrina raised her voice, but Puck couldn't make it out. _Oh __well._

At last they were as close to the middle as they could get. Sabrina looked at him. "You ready?"

He barely had time to nod before she leaned up and kissed him.

And after a breathless second, he kissed her back.

"Hey, look!"

"What the he-?"

"Didn't see _that_ coming…"

"Wait, is that-?"

Sabrina could hear the excited whispers race through the crowd as more and more people turned to look. _It__'__s __like __they__'__ve __never __seen __a __kiss __before_, she thought. She was kind of surprised when no one had a heart attack. No one was dancing anymore; everyone was busy staring at the couple kissing in the middle of the dance floor.

His mouth was smiling as he kissed her, and he pulled her closer, angling his head so they could kiss better. It was like they were the only people in the room.

They broke apart for a second. "It is a million times better," she said, and he kissed her again.

O0o0o0O

"Wait, there was a BET?" Stephanie looked dumbstruck. "What? Why do I never hear about this stuff?"

Louise grinned, adjusting her friend's wig. "You would have forgotten anyway."

Meagan and Victoria high-fived triumphantly. "YES! About TIME!"

Will scratched his fake stitches, chuckling. "Knew it was coming eventually."

Stephanie tried pouting, but eventually she gave up, squealing at the pair instead. "I'm just a sucker for true love!" Louise shook her head, still grinning.

A crash of plasticware sounded behind them. They turned to find a guy dressed as what looked like a neon clown having a fit, plastic cup cracking in his hand, punch all over the floor around him.

"Dude, you all right?" Will looked at the kid worriedly. "You look like you're having an ulcer."

"I think that's just the costume," Meagan replied. Louise snorted, and Victoria giggled. That didn't seem to help the guy, though. He started hyperventilating, and the cup in his hand cracked further, sending a little fountain of punch squirting into the air. He cursed.

Louise covered Stephanie's ears. "Hey!" she said indignantly. "Watch the language, buddy!"

The kid threw the cup, scowling, but it flew past the redhead, missing her by a foot, hitting Meagan instead.

"Ooh…," Louise winced. "Yeah, he just died."

The idiot just stood there, dumbstruck, as Meagan pulled her fist back and punched him in the gut. He went down like a rock.

The five of them looked at the limp form on the ground. "All rightie then. I say we go." Will pointed over his shoulder to the other end of the gym. Everyone nodded, and they hurried away from the unconscious kid on the floor.

O0o0o0O

"So… what now?"

Puck looked at Sabrina, who was sitting next to him on the couch. It had been only last night that he had won the bet, and the Saturday morning was looming in front of them. How had they spent it? Sitting on the couch watching movies, popcorn bowl shared between the two of them.

"What?"

"What now?" she repeated. "Is it just 'happily ever after'?"

Puck stayed silent for a while. They lived in Ferryport Landing, the proof that 'happily ever after's didn't last forever. Who knew what would happen here?

"Well," he said slowly, "I guess that's for us to find out."

She nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

She scooted closer to him, tightening the blanket around herself. The credits rolled down the screen. "What's next?"

Puck checked the pile. "Looks like… Harry Potter."

"Which number?"

"Four."

"Oh, I like this one." She took the case from him, looking at the back.

He grinned. "Why, 'cause it has Robert Pattinson in it?" he teased, taking it back and getting off the couch to put it in the DVD player. Sabrina shrugged mischieviously.

"Yeah. He's pretty good in this one, though I hate his look in Twilight. Too…," she trailed off, not finding the words she was looking for.

"Sparkly? Pale? Fake?" Puck supplied, settling back down beside her. Sabrina laughed. "Dunno, don't care that much. Harry Potter is at the top of the list right now." She took a handful of popcorn from the bowl, and the first notes of the song played out.

It was hours later that Daphne and Red got home from a birthday party and found the two of them asleep on the couch, fingers twined.

***********************************************************O0o0o0O**********************************************


	10. THANK YEW ALL

**AN: Just... ignore the next bit. It's an AN for a different story. I mean, read it if you want to, but if you don't care, then start at the line of &&&&&&&, k?**

**I'M BACK. Well, with this story. I haven't updated this since…. November? Meh. **

**Wow… Okay, I guess people really lost interest after a little bit, huh? ****/Shrug/ (For some reason Microsoft is making the little * thingies [are they called asterisks?] disappear, so I'm just going to use the / instead. Just FYI so you don't think I'm weird.) Also, I have a lot of crap going on (AGAIN. I think crap likes me or something….) and so I'm probably not going to be able to update my other crap as much as I'd like to. \(e.e)/ **

**So whatever.**

**&&&&&&&&.&&&&**

**THANK YOU, GUYS! You have voted THIS STORY to the final round! (eae) /dies from happiness/ …. /revives/ ... /screams in joy and dies again/ …/revives to write the other stories/. **

**And, no, I'm not updating any more of this. I've already got a sequel. I just wanted to thank everybody who voted for this story, and this was the quickest way I thought of (other than write an actual chapter :B) **

**Again, thank you all! **


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